Explanation:
The
1998 Leonid Meteor Shower featured many bright events.
Extremely bright meteors, known as bolides or
fireballs,
can briefly glow brighter than the
full moon.
Pictured
above is a
Leonid bolide
caught during a five-minute, wide-angle exposure.
The bolide was so bright it lit up the surrounding area,
making otherwise dark trees visible. Also visible are at
least three other meteors, numerous bright stars, and the
constellation Orion. This meteor shower is called the
Leonids
because most of the meteors move out from the constellation Leo. At this location near the Powell Observatory in Kansas,
over 200 meteors per hour were reported.